Foxes Fall to Third; Still in Playoff Hunt
June 23, 2003 - arenafootball2 (af2)
Charleston Swamp Foxes News Release
NORTH CHARLESTON, SC â The Charleston Swamp Foxes arenafootball2 team slipped both in the division standings and in the race for their first post-season berth following the 56-46 loss to the Macon Knights last Saturday.
However, the Foxes continue to find themselves amidst a heated playoff race that is still wide-open with five games remaining in the 2003 season.
Charleston slipped into a tie with the Richmond Speed for third place in the American Conference's Atlantic Division, knotted with a common 5-6 overall record. Yet, the Swamp Foxes rank above the Speed because of the 52-29 win on the road two weeks ago.
Cape Fear (8-3), the Foxes' opponent this week, faltered at Richmond last weekend, but continues to pace the Atlantic Division. Norfolk (6-5) leapfrogged Charleston into second in the division. The Greensboro Prowlers (4-7), Charleston's next home opponent on July 5, currently stands fifth in the divisional race.
Around the American Conference, Tennessee Valley remained perfect on the season with a 54-35 win over the Birmingham Steeldogs (6-5). The Albany Conquest (9-2) faltered on the road, stumbling in a 63-46 loss on the road in Norfolk. Regardless, the two, Tennessee Valley and Albany, continue to lead their respective divisions and the quest for the 2003 ArenaCup.
Cape Fear ranks third, followed by Mohegan in fourth despite holding the same overall record as the Wildcats. Cape Fear holds the third seed because they lead the Atlantic Division while Mohegan stands in second in the Northeast.
Macon (7-4), fresh off the win in Charleston, solidifies itself into the fifth seed at the present time, with Norfolk's win over Albany thrusting the Nighthawks into the sixth, and final, American Conference playoff slot.
Birmingham and Florida share the 6-5 record with Norfolk, but are edged out because of winning percentage versus common opponents in the three-way tie breaking rules. Birmingham is listed above the Firecats because of the head-to-head meeting between the two squads.
The Swamp Foxes roll in at the ninth seed, one game back of Norfolk, Birmingham, and Florida. However, when looking at the lower tier of playoff and bubble teams, Charleston holds the tie-breaker over Birmingham because the Foxes' one-point, 38-37 home-opening win over the âDogs and the Swamp Foxes' have the advantage over Norfolk because of points spread in the split of head-to-head meetings.
Each game for Charleston becomes that much more important down the stretch. It isn't an necessity that the Swamp Foxes run the table to conclude the 2003 season, but it definitely couldn't hurt playoff chances.
Looking at the teams in which the Foxes have a chance to over take, one only has to look to this weekend. A Charleston win by more than seven-points would give the Wildcats and Foxes a seasonal split, with head-to-head points spread going to Charleston. Cape Fear's schedule the rest of the way includes games with playoff hopefuls Florida (6-5) and Norfolk (6-5) at home, with a trip to Greensboro (4-7) on the road. The âCats finish up the regular season with a match-up against Memphis (4-7) in Fayetteville.
Macon, who holds the tie-breaker over the Swamp Foxes in head-to-head, has a tough row to hoe down the stretch, starting this week with a game at Florida. Macon hosts in-state rival Columbus, travels to both Norfolk and Arkansas (6-5) before returning home to wind-up the regular season with divisional match-up with Tennessee Valley (11-0).
Norfolk, as mentioned, plays both Cape Fear and Macon, who are currently playoff-bound teams. The Nighthawks also play divisional games at Greensboro and versus in-state rival, Richmond, to finish out the 2003 schedule.
Birmingham's remaining schedule is very road-trip laden. Their final five games include trips to unbeaten Tennessee Valley, Arkansas, and Columbus, with home match-ups slated against Florida and a rematch with the Arkansas Twisters.
With a little over a month remaining in the season, anything can happen in the American Conference playoff race. The "Quest for the ArenaCup" will be very interesting as the fourth season of arenafootball2 action winds down and the Swamp Foxe look for that first post-season berth in team history.
• Discuss this story on the arenafootball2 message board...
arenafootball2 Stories from June 23, 2003
- Hawaiian Islanders Game Notes - Hawaiian Islanders
- Albany Conquest Game Notes - Albany Firebirds
- Mohegan Wolves Game Notes - Mohegan Wolves
- Steamwheelers Weekly Report - Quad City Steamwheelers
- Foxes Fall to Third; Still in Playoff Hunt - Charleston Swamp Foxes
- Week 13 af2 Game Summaries - af2
- Xplorers Weekly Update - Memphis Xplorers
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
